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North Korea¡¯s missile launches on Wednesday despite warnings from Seoul is likely to sour inter-Korean ties, freezing aid to Pyongyang and casting inter-Korean economic cooperation into doubt. Suh Choo-suk, the presidential secretary for security policy, said Wednesday it was ¡°impossible for the missile launch to have no effect¡± on inter-Korean ties. ¡°When it comes to details, we will discuss them as the situation progresses,¡± he added. Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok told the opposition Grand National Party on June 21 the South would be unable to provide 500,000 tons of rice and an additional 100,000 tons of fertilizer the North has requested.
One question is whether to continue with the Kaesong Industrial Complex and tourism to the North¡¯s Mt. Kumgang resort. The government says operations there will not be affected because the projects are being conducted by the private sector. An official with the Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Office said schedules for visits to the Kaesong complex and Mt.Kumgang are already set and are unaffected by the missile launches. ¡°North Korea has made no particular response in this respect,¡± the official added.
The fate of the 19th round of inter-Korean ministerial talks in Busan, scheduled for July 11-14, is also in doubt. Unification Ministry spokesman Lee Kwan-se said the decision will be made after a ¡°comprehensive review¡± of the situation. Experts predict that the talks will go ahead as planned since the government needs to maintain channels of communication with the reclusive country to prevent tensions from escalating. There is always the chance, however, that the unpredictable North could preempt Seoul and cancel the talks.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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